1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a remote controlled telephone handset.
2. Background Information
Operating a telephone can be difficult for someone with a physical handicap or a cognitive disorder. For example, the mere manipulation of a telephone keypad may be beyond the limitation of a para- or quadriplegic. It is therefore desirable to provide a telephone handset that is easier to operate than conventional handsets of the prior art.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,453,043 issued to Zielinski et al. and assigned to Northern Telecom Ltd. discloses a telephone handset for disabled people. The Northern Telecom unit includes a mouth switch that can be blown into by an end user to answer the phone, or automatically dial an operator. To dial a number the end user must blow into the mouth piece to obtain the operator. The user verbally provides the phone number to the operator who then dials the number. The Northern Telecom phone unit can only dial the operator. The user must still be close enough to the handset to provide verbal instructions to the operator. Para- and quadriplegic users cannot always obtain close physical access to a telephone handset. It would therefore be desirable to provide a telephone handset which allows an end user to dial a phone number without being in close proximity to the phone.
There have been disclosed other remote controlled phone systems in the prior art. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,457,742 issued to Vallillee et al. discloses a telephone handset that can be dialed from the keyboard of a personal computer through a radio frequency (RF) transmitter and receiver. The Vallillee system still requires the manipulation of a keypad which is not always possible for a person with a mental or physical handicap.